This invention relates to exercise equipment and particularly to portable exercise devices that can be carried to selected locations and set up for use by an individual desiring to work out, typically on a supporting surface such as a floor. The invention relates more specifically to an exercise device having a component that is movable back and forth against a yieldable resistant element.
Various types of exercise devices have been designed and constructed to assist individuals in fitness programs. These range from relatively complex, heavy and expensive devices such as universal gymnasium apparatus and exercise tables such as the Pilates xe2x80x9cReformerxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cPerformerxe2x80x9d, to small step boxes, barbells and other weights, and various kinds of strength and flexibility building equipment. Some of this equipment is stationary and some portable, and much of it is limited in use to one or a few specialized exercises.
One exercise device of the same general type as the present invention is sold by Fitter International, Inc., Calgary, Canada, under the trademark SRF Board and has a rotary disk that is mounted on a car or skate. The car is supported on an elongated track for back-and-forth movement against resistance provided by one to four elastic bands, functionally similar to the Pilates Reformer, and a second rotary disk on a fixed base that can be positioned in a selected location near the track. The disks can support a user""s hands or feet and the components can be arranged in various combinations for different exercises. Another device sold by Fitter International, Inc. under the trademark VERSAFITTER comprises a four-wheeled car having two arcuate handles on its sides to be gripped by the user while pushing and pulling the car back and forth. Rotational handles on end brackets are usable for side-to-side movement and the car is strong enough to permit the user to stand or lie on it while doing various exercises. Both of these devices have proved to be satisfactory for their intended purposes and have been successful.
Other exercise devices of these general types exist, many being relative complex and cumbersome in construction and relatively expensive to manufacture. The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a new and improved exercise device of this general type that has numerous features and advantages, for increased core body strength, stability, and overall posture and for challenging the user""s proprioceptive system by demanding greater neuromuscular output.
The present invention resides in a novel exercise device of the foregoing character that, at the same time, is relatively simple and inexpensive in construction and very effective and versatile in use, providing a wide variety of possible exercises. This device is capable of being made as a simple box-like unit about the size and shape of a conventional briefcase or attachxc3xa9 case for ease of storage and convenient portability and is very easy to set up and use, and is capable of use in numerous exercises without need for bulky weights.
For these purposes, the presently preferred embodiment comprises a stationary platform or base in the form of an open-sided box and stationary platform that serves as a cover for the open side, having wheels on one side to support the movable platform. The wheels fit within the box when the movable platform is in place as a cover. An elastic resistance band is anchored within the box and is connectable to the movable platform when the two primary components are in side-by-side relation, and the band is adjustable for varied resistance levels simply by changing its anchor pattern within the box. Stub handles normally are stored within the box and are attachable to fittings on the outer sides of the box for use. Easily releasable latches normally hold the device closed, and a carrying handle is provided on one side of the box for convenient briefcase-like carrying. The base provides a very stable stationary platform and the trackless movable platform enhances the development of balance and biomechanical efficiency while eliminating reliance on ground contact and brute force.
The preferred elastic resistance element is an elongated, flexible elastic band that is stretched around connections in the box to set the desired tension, one length of the band being stretched across the outer side of one sidewall of the box between two exit holes, preferably on the side of the box opposite the carrying handle, to be attached to a connection on the underside of the movable platform. The connections preferably are hooks set into the material of the box and the movable platform, which may be constructed of wood panels or other suitable material, including plastic or metal. This permits changing of the band if a different range of resistance values is desired. Accessories that can be used with the basic device include a resilient xe2x80x9cpullxe2x80x9d member for use with an anchor such as an adjacent wall, and a second resistance element of different strength for variation of the resistance levels.
For a unique combination of different beneficial exercises, two disk assemblies that are additional accessories to the basic device are rotatably mountable on top of the box and on the movable platform for rotary motion of the user""s body parts while using the reciprocating motion of the two platforms. In the preferred embodiment, these disks are attachable to the basic device through simple depending pins that are received in holes in the top surfaces of the two platforms, and have releasable connections for elongated connectors that tie the two disks together for xe2x80x9cclosed chainxe2x80x9d exercises and are removable to adapt the disks for more advanced xe2x80x9copen chainxe2x80x9d exercises after the user has progressed through the easier open-chain exercises. These connectors are resistance bands that cause the disks to turn together and incidentally add resistance to turning in the higher end of the range of motion.
Other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.